By: Pivot Energy
August 29, 2024
Water is fundamental for sustaining life on Earth. We use water for nearly every aspect of our daily lives – personal health and hygiene, farming, logistics, electricity, and beyond. Although water covers roughly 70 percent of the planet, only about one percent can be used by humans. Water scarcity is becoming more prevalent as extreme heat waves and droughts become more frequent. Farmers and landowners are also up against private equity firms buying land for water rights.
Faced with these challenges, landowners and farmers seek solutions that keep their land viable and prosperous. Some landowners are exploring new land uses that are less water-intensive, such as solar farming. Others are interested in implementing dual land uses by pairing solar with agriculture, a practice known as agrivoltaics. Through efficient irrigation methods and agrivoltaics, water-conscious farmers can harness the sun's energy and grow crops while conserving water. Keep reading to learn how Pivot Energy works with landowners to implement more efficient water systems.
Agrivoltaics is a practice that marries agricultural production and solar energy production on the same land to maximize solar farms' positive impact. In this multipurpose approach to land management, the plants and the panels aren’t just casually co-existing; they are working in tandem to improve overall environmental and economic outcomes. Beyond improving land use, agrivoltaics can significantly contribute to water conservation through proper crop selection and thoughtful array design.
Choosing suitable crops is the first step to ensuring a healthy, water-aware agrivoltaics system. Drought-tolerant plants and native crops are better equipped to adapt to changing environmental conditions, including limited water, and therefore, they are often an excellent choice for a solar farm. Pivot Energy works closely with landowners to identify the best plant options to pair with their solar arrays.
But even the most hardy, drought-resistant crops can struggle in unrelenting direct sunlight. That’s where solar array design comes into play. Ensuring plants get the right amount of light and shade gives them a better chance to thrive. Too much shade and photosynthesis can’t occur. On the other hand, when plants pass their light saturation point, the light they receive will no longer contribute to their photosynthesis process and will eventually harm the plant. Furthermore, excess light can increase the ground temperature, leading to more water evaporation.
More than just providing shade, panel coverage also increases humidity, creating a microclimate below, limiting the evaporation rate, and resulting in more water in the ground. The plants can then use this remaining moisture, thus reducing irrigation needs.
Tailoring solar arrays to individual cases comes in several forms. Pivot Energy works with landowners to modify the design of their solar racks to create a more conducive environment for grasses to grow for grazing animals.
In addition to improved crop yields, plants help keep solar panels cooler, leading to a 10% increase in electricity production.
One piece of the puzzle is using agrivoltaics to conserve water on your land. Crops still need water to grow, and irrigation methods are available that can help you make the most of your available water source. The following section covers different irrigation systems and how water use differs from one approach to the next.
Water efficiency varies significantly depending on the irrigation system used. Comparing several of these methods side-by-side shows how to reduce water use.
Flood irrigation, or surface irrigation, involves flooding the entire area of your crops. This is the most popular irrigation method in the world because it requires the least effort and technical lift. However, it also has the lowest efficiency rate, around 50 percent — meaning only half of the water used reaches the plant.
Pivot irrigation uses automated sprinkler systems that draw water from a local source, such as a well, river, or reservoir. At 75 percent efficiency, pivot sprinklers provide better water use than flood irrigation, but there is still room for improvement.
Drip irrigation is the most effective of the three methods, with about 90 percent of the water reaching the plants. This approach involves placing tubing systems along the ground where the plants grow and dripping water from perforations in the tubes. For water-conscious landowners and farmers, this method gets the most out of their irrigation efforts.
Pairing agriculture and solar energy requires a lot of nuance and thought to meet the landowner's needs. Partnering with a developer like Pivot Energy means having a collaborator who will help address specific requirements and maximize land use.
Pivot Energy established its first drip irrigation site in Colorado. For this project, Pivot Energy worked with the landowner to keep agriculture viable on their land. This included helping install a drip irrigation system on the property by splitting the cost of converting the old pivot sprinkler system. Combining photovoltaics with the new irrigation methods, Pivot Energy helped establish a dual land-use practice, leading to continued use of the parcel as irrigated farmland with increased water-use efficiency. This improvement also benefited Pivot Energy's farming partner, who provides animal grazing services to maintain the health of the land.
In addition to the project above, Pivot Energy has six Colorado projects in late-stage development. These sites demonstrate Pivot's continued commitment to working with landowners to achieve their goals and will add about 250 additional acres of irrigation, cropping, and photovoltaics.
The challenge farmers and landowners face regarding water use stresses an already demanding job. Pivot Energy prides itself on working with our partners to navigate these times of crisis and uncertainty. Pivot Energy is working to keep land viable for the future by assisting them in transitioning to more sustainable water management. Contact our team here for more information about how Pivot Energy can help establish agrivoltaic, water conservation, and irrigation practices on your land.
Pivot Energy
Contact our team for more information about how Pivot Energy can help establish agrivoltaic, water conservation, and irrigation practices on your land.
